Account system.



C. K. RAINEY.-

ACCOUNT SYSTEM.

:APPLICATION FILED QCT.13.1917.

Patented ul 2,1918.

Address Bring? f'ord affo'zue 1 111E "cums PETER: conrwomuwuov, WASNINQTOM o c CLIFTON K. RAINEY, 0F KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE.

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' ACCOUNT SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 2, lat.

Application filed October 13, 1917. Serial No. 196,430.

.a citizen of the United States, residing at Knoxville, in the county of Knox and State of Tennessee, have invented new and useful Improvements in Account Systems, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention relates to improvements in account systems of that kind commonly used by banks and other institutions for keep ng a record, preferably day by day, of debits, credits and balances of the individual accounts, and wherein loose-leaf ledger sheets or cards are employed on which the entries are made or posted showing the changes in the accounts as they occur and the balances as they vary, from day to day. While the invention is primarily designed for banking use in keeping account of the balances of depositors, it may also be used in keeping account of other similar and varied commercial transactions.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an account system whereby time and labor may be saved in sorting checks and deposit slips or other like debit and credit memoranda and applying the same to the particular ledger or account sheets to which the items thereon are to be posted.

A further object of the invention is to provide a system of division cards and ledger sheets and receptacles for holding the same in proper relative position to secure the desired result.

The invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a form of box or case employed in my improved account system.

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section of the same, showing a division card and correlated ledger sheet and illustrating the use thereof.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a portion of the box or case and some of the division cards and ledger sheets on a reduced scale.

Fig. i is a vertical transverse section through a modified form of box or case.

In carrying my invention into practice, in the example shown, I provide a suitable box, case or cabinet 1 formed to provide adjacent receptacles, chambers or compartments. 2 and 3, preferably arranged side by 7 side or in parallel relation, as shown. The,

chamber or compartment 2 is made comparatively deep to receive a desired or prescribed number of ledger or account sheets 4, while the compartment 3 is made of relatively shallower depth to receive an equivalent number of indicating or division cards till 5. The sheets 4 are placed vertically edge- I wise in the compartment 2, and are of greatest length or depth in a vertical direction, while the cards 5, which are also placed edgewise vertically in the compartment 3, are of relatively less depth than the sheets 4 and of greatest. length in a horizontal or transversedirection. The sheets l may be made of ordinary paper stock, such as commonly used for ledger or account sheets, while the cards Zimay be made of cardboard or any other suitable material.

In practice, the sheets 4, which are arranged in the compartment 2 in alphabetical order, may be employed to receive debit and credit memoranda pertaining to bank or other accounts. When used for indicating the balances of the accounts of bank depositors, each sheet 4 may be suitably ruled to provide a head space 6 to receive the name and address of the depositor, a vertical column 7 to receive date entries, a vertical column 8 to receive memoranda relating to the posting or entries made, a vertical column 9 to receive debit entries, and a vertical column 10 to receive credit entries, the debit and credit entries representing, for example, withdrawals and deposits. These entries may be posted at the .end of each days business and the totals footed up to show the 7 balance or standing of the account from day to day. The sheets 4: may, however, be used in other commercial transactions for indicating the standing of accounts, and therefore the invention is not limited in this particular.

Where the elements of the account system may be arranged within a box or case of convenient size, it will of course be understood that all the ledger sheets of the entire alphabetical series may be arranged within a single compartment 2, and in such event all the indicating or division cards 5 of the entire alphabetical series will be arranged within the associated single compartment 3. In large banks or other large commercial institutions, however, it will be understood that, according to the number of accounts carried, the ledger sheets and cooperating set of indicating cards may be separated as required throughout the alphabetical series and arranged as necessary or required in separate boxes, receptacles or compartments, each containing all the ledger sheetsand indicating cards falling under any certain alphabetical letter or any series of them, as desired or required.

The compartment 3 is designed to receive checks or debit slips and credit or deposit slips of any character, which are to be sorted or separated from each other, according to the amounts to which they apply, in order that the entries thereon may be properly posted to the account sheets to which they apply. Asshown in the present instance, the checks or debit slips 11 may be placed lengthwise transversely of and within the compartment 3 together with the credit or deposit slips 12 pertaining to the same account, which slips'12may be disposed vertically at the right hand side of the compartment 3. The cards 5 are provided with indicating tabs 13 bearing their class letter, and other tabs 14 bearing the name of the depositor orcustomer to whose account they particularly apply, and after the checks or debit slips and credit or deposit slips are sorted they areplaced in the compartment 3 in rear of the cards 5 representing the accounts to which they apply, whereby the sorted checks and deposit slips pertaining to each account will be placed together and separated by the division cards from the checks and deposit slips pertaining to other accounts. If desired, as illustrated in the modification shown in Figst, the compartment 3 may beiprovided with adepression 15 to receive, the slips 12, thus allowing said slips to be disposed in an upright position so that their head portions will come immediately behind or in line with the tabs 14 instead of projecting thereabove as will be readily understood. A cover 16 may be provided to form a top for the box or cabinet to inclose and protect the sheets and cards from dust,.dirt and injury, when the cabinet sheets and cards are not being handled for sorting and posting purposes.

The function of the cards 5 is not only to separate the debit and credit slips of the individual accounts. from each other, but also to automatically register with, and designate or indicate. those account sheets 4. to which the debit and credit slips indicated thereby relate, and to which the items on said-debit and credit slips are .to be posted, thus enabling the ledger or account sheets to be removed and posted in a ready and. convenient manner and with a material saving of time and labor overordinary operations of this character. As shown, each card 5 preferably; has itsiupper left hand corner portion cut away at an oblique angle, as-illustrated at 17, to expose the corresponding corner portions. of the checks 11, arranged in rear thereof, and each card or recess 18 to receive and engage a rod 19 extending between the front and rear walls of the compartment 3, whereby the cards are. permitted to slide back and forth in said compartment, and to be inserted and removed, while held from shifting from side to side of the compartment. The compartments2 and 3 are separated at their joining sides by a flange or upright 20 against which the inner edges of the cards 5, checks 11 and slips 12 abut to additionally hold the cards from inward movement and to prevent the checks and deposit slips from becoming displaced and falling into the compartment 2. At their inner ends the cards 5 are provided with projections 21 in the form of tongues or lingers which extend over the flange or stop 20 and between the sheets t above the top of the compartment 2, the tongues of fingers 21 of the series of cards 5 thus holding the ledger or account sheets 4 spaced or separated from each other and at'the same time providing indicating means for at all times pointing to or indicating the particular ledger or account sheet to which each indicating card relates or in connection with which. it is to be used. It will, of course, be understood that the ledger sheets and cards may be employed in conjunction with ordinary follower blocks or like devices for holding them in compact form in the compartments 2 and 3, while allowing them to be spread apart and moved backwardly and forwardly in the compartments to permit the sheets to be readily applied and removed and the'debit and credit slips to be placed between the cards 5 in the-compartment 3.

It will thus be understood that at the close of a'days business, or at other convenient times, the checks and deposit slips representing debits or withdrawals and credits or deposits constituting part of the days business may be properly sorted and arranged in the compartment 3 in such a manner that the checks and deposit slips applying to the particular accounts will be arranged in'rear of the-indicating cards 5 representing such accounts, and that as the checks and slips aresorted and placed in the compartment 3 the tongues or fingers 21 of the cards 5 will at all times automatically indicate the ledger sheets to which the respective lots of checks and deposit slips relate and to which the items thereon are to be transferred or posted, thus saving time and labor in locating the ledger sheets and posting the same so as to indicate the balances or standing of the accounts aiiected by transactions in the days business. The clerk in charge of posting the accounts hasthu merely to figure the results of all debits and credits on each afiected account as it occurs in the compartment 3 upon a calculating machine and then post the results upon the ledger sheet, which is immediately at hand for the urpose. By this means time, trouble and la or are saved over all other posting systems including those using loose-leaf ledger sheets of the ordinary type.

My invention will be found of great convenience and value by banks in figuring the days balances of all accounts whose balances have changed during the day, but may be also employed for other purposes, such as in keeping commercial accounts of various accounts, and l[ therefore do not limit the invention to any particular use, but reserve the right to employ it in any connection in which it may be found serviceable for keeping accounts. A

It will, of course, be understood tha while, for example, I have shown, as one way of carrying my invention into practical effect, the formation of the two chambers, compartment or receptacles in a single box or case, the invention is not necessarily limited to such structure, as, obviously, the receptacles may be separately formed and suitably fastened together in parallel or other suitable relationship to perform the function described.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim:

1. An account system comprising a cabinet having compartments arranged side by side, account sheets in one of the compartments, division sheets in the other compartment for separating therein slips bearing account memoranda pertaining to different accounts to be posted upon the account sheets, and means for indicating the account sheets to which the memoranda separated by the division sheets relate.

2. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets arranged in one of said receptacles, indicating and division cards in the other receptacle for separating different account slips bearing items to be posted upon the account sheets, and means associated with the indieating and division cards for indicating the sheets to which the cards pertain.

3. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets pertaining to difierent accounts arranged in alphabetical order in one of said receptacles, division and indicating cards arrangedwithin the other receptacle for separating and holding in proper order therein debit and credit slips pertaining to the accounts represented by the sheets, and projections upon the cards extending between the sheets and indicating the sheets to which the respective cards apply.

4. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets arranged within one of said receptacles in alphabetical order and provided with suitably designated spaces to receive items pertaining to different accounts, division and indicating cards arranged within the other receptacle and bearing data in relationship to the respective sheets, said indicating cards being adapted for separating debit and credit slips of difierent accounts within said second named receptacle, and integral projections upon said indicating and division cards projecting over the first receptacle and between the sheets for indicating the sheets to which the slips separated by the cards apply.

5. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets arranged within one of said receptacles and provided with appropriately designated spaces to receive data pertaining to difi:'erent accounts, the other of said receptacles being of suitable shape and size to receive sorted debit and credit slips pertaining to the accounts represented by said account sheets, division and indicating cards within the second named receptacle for separating and indicating the slips pertaining to the various accounts, and indicating projections from said cards extending between the account sheets and indicating the sheets to which the difi'erent cards apply.

6. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets arranged within one of said receptacles, the other receptacle being of suitable shape and size for receiving sorted sets of debit and credit memoranda from which items are to be posted to the account sheets, division and indicating cards arranged within the second named receptacle for separating the memoranda pertaining to the various accounts, and tongues on said cards projecting between the sheets to indicate the sheets to which the memoranda separated by the cards apply.

7. An account system comprising a pair of adjacent receptacles, account sheets within one of said receptacles, the other receptacle being of suitable form and size to receive sorted debit and credit memoranda slips from which the items are to be posted to the account sheets representing the different accounts, and indicating and divisi on cards arranged within the second named receptacle and separating the sorted sets of slips from each other, said cards having portions cut away to expose portions of cer tain slips and having indicating projections extending between the sheets to indicate the sheets to which the cards relate.

In testimony whereof ll afiix my signa ture.

CLIFTON K. RAINEY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of ratents, Washington, D, a 

